Kitty saved from jaws of coyote

It was 10:45 a.m., June 8, 2005, an unusually hot morning. Since the air conditioner was on, I let our 15-year-old cat, Tony, outside, kicked off my shoes and mentally reminded myself to let him back inside in 10 minutes.

Suddenly, I heard a sound. What was that? Again I heard a noise, this time a loud thud along with a piercing scream. I raced to the door, flung it open and there on the front step, a coyote the size of a large German shepherd had Tony pinned against the screen door.

Without taking time to think, I reacted. I screamed, and rushed outside. As the coyote ran off, carrying Tony by his neck in its jaws, I dashed after them in my bare feet. Down the steps and into the street, yelling "Stop! Let him go!"

I followed them up the hill, past four houses, almost a quarter of mile. I heard the poor cat yelp and watched him try to grab onto the street to free himself from the viselike grip of the wild animal.

Tony is a 20-pound ball of fur. As any cat owner knows, when not holding themselves erect, cats can feel like a 50pound bag of potatoes. At this point, the coyote was struggling to hold on to Tony and outrun me, but was having a difficult time doing either.

SURVIVOR-Tony, who lives with the Salvato family in Oak Park, escaped certain death thanks to his owner's quick and determined rescue efforts when the cat was carried off by a coyote last summer. Seeing this, my frustration and anger turned to hope, even though my legs hurt. I was not going to give up, especially not after following them this far. It didn't matter that I was 62 years old or that the week before my doctor recommended I take a stress test-I was determined to bring my boy home.

The coyote made a sharp right turn and ran up a hill of ivy. Barefoot, without hesitation and not thinking what could be lurking in the ground cover, I said a quick prayer for strength and followed them to the top, which was covered with overgrown brush.

Whether the coyote was tired of hearing my high-pitched voice, or the weight of Tony was too much for him to lug over the top, or it realized I was only trying to retrieve a member of my brood, it dropped Tony and stood there, watching me climb up the hill.

For 15 seconds the coyote and I stared each other down. My heart was pounding and my mind was only thinking of retrieving my pet. I am positive that if the animal had attacked me, I could have strangled him with my bare hands in my anger.

Seeing Tony there helpless, blood coming from the corner of his mouth and in shock, I bundled him in my arms and slid all the way down the hill, not looking back to see if the predator was after us.

I placed Tony in his pet carrier and rushing to the veterinarian, where the technicians immediately placed him on an IV tube, took X-rays and treated him for shock and muscle trauma. His claws on all four paws were raw and bleeding from raking across the concrete and were treated with antibiotic and wrapped in gauze.

The only serious injuries were non-invasive bite marks to his head and neck and a chipped front tooth. When I knew he was going to survive the ordeal, the gravity of the event began to sink in and I started to cry tears of relief.

I had always tried to

keep my pets safe from danger. I thought if I kept my pets in the house until 11 a.m. and there was noise outside, like cars or lawn mowers, coyotes would stay away. There goes that theory.

When coyotes are hungry, they don't care if it's day or night-they go hunting.

I called the wildlife department to notify them that coyotes had taken residence in our area. They advised me to either spread cayenne pepper or place ammonia-soaked rags around the perimeter of our home to keep them from coming onto the property.

They also said it was against the law to harm or kill them. Ask any pet lover who has lost their animal to a wild coyote and I'm sure they would disagree with that statement.

I didn't take any chances or use either suggestion. From then on, Tony became an indoor pet and has accustomed himself to sitting on the inside looking out.

This story was submitted by Rochelle Salvato of Oak Park.